FEATURES

• Quality Control
  Eliminating Board Defects
  Quality product starts with DfA and the master drawing. But fabricators and assemblers have their place, too.
  By Zulki Khan

• SEA and NPI Awards
  ‘Inspiration to Innovate’
  The 2008 edition of Circuits Assembly’s Service Excellence Awards was notable for the continuing dominance of Aegis as it was for the ascent of several previously under-the-radar EMS companies who made their mark for the first time. Plus: The NPI Award makes its debut.
  By Chelsey Drysdale

• Cover Story
  Evaluating Manufacturability and Operational Costs for New Conformal Coating Processes
  Higher density components and smaller footprint layouts make the conformal coating process more challenging in terms of achieving acceptable first-pass process yields and cost-effective cycle times. This study of seven assembly process variables identified the three most critical variables and their impacts.
  By Jason Keeping

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Connecting the bumps.
  Mike Buetow

• Talking Heads
  DEK's John Hartner.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• Focus on Business
  The longer, the better?
  Susan Mucha

• Global Sourcing
  Slapped by the “invisible hand.”
  Jennifer Read

TECH TALK

• Screen Printing
  A 55° squeegee angle enhances print quality.
  Clive Ashmore

• Reflow Soldering
  Yield improvement, one defect at a time.
  Ursula Marquez de Tino

• Test and Inspection
  No test points? No problem.
  Chris Jacobsen

• Process Doctor
  Brush cleaning, clarified.
  Terry Munson

• Pb-Free Lessons Learned
  When prevention isn’t an option.
  Chrys Shea

• Getting Lean
  View to a thrill.
  Robert Hemmant

• Materials World
  RoHS compliance versus Pb-free capability.
  Dr. Renzhe Zhao

• Technical Abstracts

DEPARTMENTS

Industry News
Market Watch
Product Spotlight
Assembly Insider
Ad Index

On the cover: Novel test procedures and processes demonstrate that comparisons among various cleaning agents, masking materials, coating materials and application equipment can be made. (Photo courtesy Asymtek)